Soaked with Guilt
by Victory's Raconteur
Summary: After eight-year-old Simon gives in to a spike of mischief, he accidentally hurts his best friend with her worst fear...and learns a lesson on restraint, as well as a secret that Jeanette has never revealed before.


_**Based on past events from the most bizarre AatC FF ever written…**_

_**NOTE:  
Please read the following before you continue:**__**  
"TFH – The Bespectacled Two"**_

* * *

_**TFH – Soaked with Guilt**_

_**Seven years ago…**_

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon at the Millers' residence. The old brick house sat back against the woods, with rows of little yellow, purple, and white pansies lining the outer porch, where old Miss Miller sat on a wooden swing with a hardback book in hand.

It was the direct middle of summer and, as a result, it was _extremely _hot; the thermometer read approximately eighty-seven degrees Fahrenheit.

Dave Seville had left his eight-year-old chipmunks at the Millers' house while he set off to his workplace for a meeting, so that they could play with their newly-formed counterparts, the chipettes.

After seeing how overheated the little ones were getting, after playing outside for only half an hour- and after noting that their fur couldn't possibly be helping them get any cooler- Miss Miller had granted them permission to play with the spray hose for a short while, letting them have fun while also cooling off.

"Um, Miss Miller…?"

The old woman looked up from her book, pulling her glasses down so that she could see the little purple-clad chipette peeking out of the screen door of the house.

"Hello, Jeanette," Miss Miller said in her soft, kind voice characteristic of old age, "Are you having fun?"

Jeanette smiled in her shy little way, showing her enlarged front teeth; Miss Miller noticed that her fur and light purple summer outfit were dry, save a few beads of sweat.

"Yeah…but I'm really thirsty. Can, uh, can you help me get some water, please?"

"Sure, sweetie," Miss Miller replied, setting her book down on the nearby wicker table. The two headed inside, the old caretaker understanding that her girls' small statures made it hard to get things down from higher areas.

Meanwhile, in the closed-in back yard of the Miller household, the other five youngsters played happily in the lush, green grass, enjoying the fresh air and feeling of freedom that was acquired from being outside.

The young ones were currently caught up in another rather crazy situation characteristic of the chipmunks: they ran around wildly, Alvin chasing them with an arc of cold water blasting from the watering hose in his hands.

The yard was a comfortable one, as tall, thick hedges covered the sides and the forest covered the back. A single, large oak tree sat in the center of the yard, casting a cool, wide shadow across a good part of the area.

At just under three feet tall, the chipmunks and chipettes were still quite young- eight, to be exact- and were still up to their relatively wild antics.

The chipettes wore lightly colored outfits: For Eleanor, a single-piece bathing suit of a lime-green color, supported by two straps over her shoulders. Brittany wore a light pink bikini with a wraparound top, along with the single pink ribbon that supported her stylized ponytail.  
Jeanette- who was not present at the moment- wore a simple summer outfit, with a short, dark blue skirt and light purple short-sleeve shirt, in order to stay cool.

The chipmunks had taken off their shirts to avoid getting them wet, and they wore swimming trunks of their signature colors.

All had taken off their shoes, and all but Jeanette were utterly soaked from the water-war that the group was having.

Alvin laughed as he tried to spray Eleanor, who squealed in response and ducked behind a nearby hedge alongside Theodore. Brittany poked her head out from behind the tall oak, ocher-brown fur soaked with water.

"Hey, hotshot!" she yelled, "Bring it on!" The eldest chipette playfully stuck her tongue out at her counterpart, who proceeded to come charging at the tree, laughing loudly.

Brittany yelped and ducked for cover as a blast of water smacked into the oak, sending an icy, white spray flying through the air.

"Get back out here, hot-stuff!" Alvin taunted, knowing very well that his words were foolish. Sure enough:

"What'd you call me!"

Laughing like a maniac, Alvin took off back around the yard as the angry chipette bolted after him. The chipmunk sprayed the hose frantically over his shoulder in an attempt to deter his pursuer, but to no avail.

Suddenly, the rope of the hose reached its full length, and cut short in Alvin's hands. It snapped up, caught around the eldest chipmunk's leg, and sent him tumbling into the grass.

Brittany, who had been following just behind her counterpart, yelped as the same happened to her: the hose cut short, and Alvin suddenly fell to the ground in front of her. Unable to stop in time on the slippery grass, the eldest chipette tripped over the deep green rope, and found herself tumbling onto the bare-chested red-clad chipmunk.

Theodore and Eleanor burst out laughing as they emerged from the cover of the nearby hedges, the youngest chipette finding it especially funny in that her oldest sister's fit of anger had failed.

Alvin looked up, grinning coyly as he realized his pink-clad counterpart was sprawled across his stomach.

"Well," he said, "Fancy meeting you here, hothead..."

"Oh, _ha-ha!" _Brittany snapped, reaching up to playfully bop her counterpart on the nose with one hand.

"Ouch!" Alvin joked, "Someone call the doctor! Crazy gal done gone 'n broke my nose!"

The red-clad chipmunk burst out laughing yet again as Brittany quickly wrapped her hands lightly around his throat, pretending to strangle him as she jerked him up and down.

"Al-vin-would-you-shut-up!" Brittany snapped playfully, spacing her words between gentle jerks on Alvin's neck.

Alvin just smiled up at his counterpart in a sly way, his hand unknowingly reaching out to try and find the water hose that had fallen nearby.

Suddenly:

"Eh-hem…"

Brittany and Alvin paused, looking up to see Simon standing nearby, a sly grin across his face, a strange glint in his steel-blue eyes. In one hand was the hose's spray-head; the middle chipmunk was twirling it around even as he continued to grin evilly at the two eldest ones.

"Uh-oh…" Alvin muttered.

Simon smiled wider, raised the nozzle to point right at Alvin and Brittany…and pulled the rubber trigger.

The eldest chipmunk and chipette yelped and scrambled to untangle themselves as a freezing-cold blast of water shot from the hose, drenching them in an icy spray.

As Alvin and Brittany finally leapt to their feet and took off running, they made sure to run right past Theodore and Eleanor's hiding spot, prompting the two youngest ones to jump from the hedges and run right along with them as the blast of water filtered right through the small leaves.

Simon couldn't help but laugh as all four of the others bolted for the cover of the large oak tree, getting utterly soaked the whole way there.

As it turns out, the tree did the besieged group little good, as Simon was right on their tails. They dove behind the oak…and the bespectacled chipmunk quickly circled around the other side, causing the four to cry out in surprise and quickly bolt out from their failed cover, darting in different directions.

"Nice one, Si!" Alvin laughed, making a run for the hedges.

"Can't hit me, four-eyes!" Brittany taunted, forgetting to make sure she was a safe distance from the subject of said insult. Simon instantly whipped around, causing the pink-clad chipette to yelp in surprise as his icy spray caught her right in her bare, light brown belly.

Theodore and Eleanor held up their hands in surrender as they stepped back over to him, indicating the blue-clad chipmunk not to fire. Simon did not, and simply lowered his 'weapon'.

"Uh…we're taking…a break, Simon," Theodore said, his breathing heavy. The youngest chipmunk's light brown fur, mostly of his back, was soaking wet.

Eleanor lowered her hands to her knees, breathing heavily as cool water and sweat dripped from her even lighter fur and lime-green suit. "Yeah," she said breathlessly, "We're…pooped…"

"Alright," Simon said, finding himself just out of breath as well, "Keep out of the crossfire…"

The two youngest ones laughed breathlessly, and slowly made their way back towards the Millers' house, heading for the wooden stairs that led up into the laundry room of the small brick home.

As Simon watched them go, he noticed a light purple-clad form suddenly walk through the hedges on the farther side of the yard.

'_Jeanette…' _Simon thought, _'Alright, my friend, now it's your turn…'_

The bespectacled chipmunk quickly ducked behind the oak, smiling slyly to himself as he waited for his dark-furred friend to come closer.

"Hey, um…where is everybody?" Jeanette called, glancing over her seemingly empty back yard as she stepped forward, "Hello?"

"We're back here, Jean!" Brittany called from the far hedges, poking her head out from the tiny, dark green leaves. Alvin hid beside her, waiting to make sure there was no incoming blast of water.

"Oh…um, where's Simon…?"

"Your boyfriend's behind the tree, sis!" the ochre-furred chipette teased.

"H-He's not my…_boyfriend…" _Jeanette replied softly, her little nose darkening as she blushed. Embarrassed, he turned her light violet-blue eyes to the ground as she started across the small yard towards the tree.

Simon heard the soft crunching of footsteps coming nearer, and his hand tightened on the hose's rubber nozzle as he prepared to playfully ambush his bespectacled counterpart. He smiled, thinking of how surprised she would be…

Brittany noticed this, and her ice-blue eyes flickered from her middle sister to the blue-clad chipmunk. They widened, and her smile disappeared, as she realized what Simon was planning to do.

"No!" she cried, "Wait!"

Too late.

Smiling, the perfectly content Jeanette poked her head around the large oak tree, expecting to find her trustworthy bespectacled friend hiding there.

"Hey Si-"

A blast of ice-cold water shot the chipette right in the face, taking her completely off-guard and causing her breath to jump.

Jeanette cried out and threw her hands up, staggering back from the cold spray, as Simon laughed cheerfully at the success of his joke. Completely misunderstanding the chipette's cry as one of delight, the middle chipmunk continued to fire the spray of cold water right at his friend's body.

Jeanette staggered back again…and tripped, falling hard on her rear in the grass, still struggling to shield herself from Simon's unwarranted attack.

"Stop it, Simon!" Brittany yelled, taking Alvin by surprise as she leapt from the wall of hedges and took off running straight for the blue-clad chipmunk.

Simon did not realize his terrible mistake…

Until Jeanette let out a short scream of terror, curling up into a ball on the grass, holding her arms over her head as she tried to defend herself.

"Jeanette?" Simon exclaimed, quickly tossing the hose head away. As soon as the spray of water no longer clouded the air, the bespectacled chipmunk saw immediately that his simple idea of a playful joke had gone terribly wrong.

"Jeanette!"

The poor purple-clad chipette was sitting up, halfway curled up on the ground, her arms still raised over her head. From the short distance between them, Simon could easily see that his utterly soaked friend was shaking like a leaf; not so much of cold, but of pure fear.

Jeanette drew in a short breath…and let out a soft wail as tears streamed from her little violet-blue eyes, gliding over the already-soaked chocolate-brown fur of her cheeks.

Stunned, Simon found himself wondering what he should do, when suddenly:

"What'd you do _that _for, you jerk!"

The bespectacled chipmunk turned- just in time to get shoved away _hard _by Brittany as the infuriated chipette moved to defend her trembling sister.

Simon stumbled back, nearly tripping over his own feet from the force of Brittany's push. "Wha…I…I didn't…" he stuttered.

"Shut it!" Brittany snapped, "She was just coming out here to play with you, and you shoot her with a hose!"

"He didn't know she'd _cry _about getting wet, Brittany!" Alvin yelled, as he ran up beside his bewildered brother. Jeanette curled up a bit tighter, leaning against the large trunk of the oak as she continued to cry loudly into her arms, hugging her short, bushy tail around her body.

"Don't you call my sister a _coward!"_ Brittany snapped back, "She's not that _brave…_but she doesn't like getting _shot_ in the _face_ with a hose!"

"Well, she's definitely not-!" Alvin began, but everyone froze as Miss Miller's voice called out from the back porch:

"What's going on out here?"

Everyone- save Jeanette- peeked out around the tree to see the old woman heading towards them, a stern look on her somewhat wrinkled face.

Theodore and Eleanor followed her, wondering what was causing so much commotion, worry evident in their green eyes as they seemed to hide behind the old woman's legs.

"Well _now _you're in trouble, four-eyes…" Brittany muttered, glaring heavily at Simon with angry, ice-blue eyes.

Simon's mind raced as he struggled to come up with something to do. Obviously, something had gone _very_ wrong when he had simply tried to playfully spray Jeanette with the hose, but he did not know _what _that something was.

Miss Miller finally caught sight of the crying, shivering form of Jeanette, and gasped slightly, quickening her pace to the group.

"Dearies, what happened?" she asked sternly, "Why is Jeanette all wet? And why is she crying?" She looked at group of quailing chipmunks, waiting for an answer, while Theodore and Eleanor hid quietly behind her legs.

"It was Simon!" Brittany said angrily, "Jeanette came out here to see him, and he _shot_ her with the hose!"

"He didn't know she would _cry _about it!" Alvin defended, "Si was just playing around! Right, bro?"

Simon gave his brother a troubled look, his face darkening with shame under Miss Miller's glare. He lowered his gaze, unable to take the impact of so many accusations when not even _he _knew what had caused his prank to go so wrong.

"Y…Yeah…" he said softly, "I…I didn't mean to hurt her…"

Miss Miller noticed how Simon's steel-blue eyes seemed to shimmer, and he stared past the defensive form of Brittany to his sobbing best friend. The old woman could tell he was truly sorry…

She had to tell him why what he had done was so wrong.

The woman sighed. "Alright, everyone, go on inside and find a seat in the living room…I'll be in to talk to you shortly…"

Alvin and Brittany groaned, but quickly followed their younger siblings back towards the Miller residence. Simon stared after them, not wanting to move…which worked in Miss Miller's favor.

"Simon," she said, causing the bespectacled chipmunk to jerk a bit, "Please, sit down."

Nervous, Simon immediately did as he was told, not taking his eyes off his sobbing friend as he did so. Miss Miller surprised him by sitting down in between him and Jeanette, quickly putting one arm around the shivering chipette.

"It's alright, sweetie…" the kind old woman said. Jeanette's cries softened, but did not stop, as she hid her soaked, furry face in her caretaker's white robe.

Simon was still so confused. He felt ashamed, he felt sorry, he felt embarrassed…but most of all, he just wanted to know what he had done to make his best friend so upset.

Did he surprise her? Scare her? Somehow _hurt_ her?

The bespectacled chipmunk was so caught up in pondering the possibilities that it took him a moment to realize Miss Miller was already speaking.

"Excuse me? Ah, Simon?" the woman said, causing Simon to blink himself back to alertness.

"Oh…I…s-sorry…" he said softly, refusing to meet her eyes.

Miss Miller stared at the quailing blue-clad chipmunk for a moment, before turning down to the still-trembling Jeanette.

"Sweetie?" she asked gently, "Is it alright if I tell him?"

Jeanette pulled her face away from her caretaker's robe, shivering, and stared up at her with teary, violet-blue eyes. The chipette's gaze flickered to the worried, steel-blue eyes of her blue-clad friend, and finally to the ground. She nodded.

"Alright…" Miss Miller said, "Simon?"

The chipmunk gave the old woman his attention without hesitation, sitting up straighter so that he could hear her easier. "Y-Yes, Miss Miller…?"

"As good as a companion to my little Jeanette as you've been, you deserve to know…"

The old woman paused, then:

"Jeanette…is _terribly _afraid of water. Have you noticed that every time we go to the beach, or to a pool, she never decides to swim? Or, in that case, even get _near _the water?"

Simon thought for a moment…and the realization hit him like a brick.

"She cannot stand having it above neck-level…when she was little, I had to give her baths separate from her sisters because their roughhousing ways would always end up splashing little Jeanette, and for some reason even I do not know, she would get so terribly afraid-"

"I-I-I fell in…"

Both Simon and Miss Miller looked over in surprise at the purple-clad chipette's interruption, and saw her staring back with tearful eyes.

"Fell in?" Miss Miller asked gently, "Fell in where, sweetie?"

"B-Before…a l-long time ago, r-right before we…we were sent to the orphanage…we…we were hungry, and…and we found a big apple tree by a river…"

Jeanette sniffed, struggling to hold back her tears before she continued:

"B-Brittany…convinced me to try and be brave. We were so small…so, we had to climb the tr-tree to get the a-apples…Eleanor told me not to, but…but…I took Brittany's word, a-and I tried to do it…"

The soaked chipette sniffed again, leaning tighter against Miss Miller's side.

"I was so…_stupid_. I t-tried to climb on a branch over the r-river, and get one of the apples…b-but I wasn't strong enough…I-I slipped and fell and…and I…"

Jeanette simply broke down after that, hiding her face in her caretaker's robe while whimpering loudly, as if embarrassed. Which she most certainly was: she had just admitted being afraid of a little water right in front of her best friend.

It was both Simon _and _Miss Miller, however, that were actually somewhat shocked rather than disappointed. The old caretaker had never been able to convince Jeanette to reveal why she was scared of water before, and now, she had just let it all out with-

Miss Miller's eyes widened a bit, and, with a smile across her pale lips, she turned and looked at the bespectacled chipmunk sitting beside her.

Simon did not look up to her, but instead kept his worried gaze concentrated right on her beloved little purple-clad chipette, steel-blue eyes filled with pure concern for his friend.

'_Perhaps...she _does _see something special in him…' _she thought, gently stroking Jeanette's trembling back.

Miss Miller sighed.

"Alright, little ones…" she said, "I'm going to go talk to the others…if they haven't torn each other apart by now. Jeanette, thank you…it's good to talk about things like that. It really gets a rock off your chest, doesn't it?"

Jeanette sniffed, and nodded again.

"Simon, I believe you owe Jeanette an apology…but I am glad that you now understand why your action had such an effect on her, correct?"

"Yes, ma'am," Simon replied without hesitation.

"Okay then…"

Miss Miller groaned as she got back to her feet, her old joints aching in protest. "You two can stay out here…the others will be out shortly."

With one last kind smile, the old caretaker turned and headed back to the house. She could not help but wonder…just how far the Sevilles' relationships with her girls had gone in such a short time, and if, perhaps, they were one day going to go even farther.

The bespectacled two did not move…until the old, thoughtful woman had gone in and shut the screen door behind her.

As soon as he heard the soft _'click', _Simon was right on top of Jeanette, wrapping his arms around the chipette's sopping wet body to hug her tightly but gently around her middle and taking her completely off guard for the second time.

"S-Simon!" Jeanette asked, shocked. Her little pink nose darkened as the contact with her best friend…caused a strange emotion to bubble up inside her.

"I'm so sorry, Jeanette…" Simon said gently, "I…I _didn't_ know. But that's no excuse…what I did was mean and…unnecessary."

He paused, willingly sharing his body heat with his dear friend as part of his heartfelt apology.

Then:

"Will you…please, forgive me…?"

Jeanette was lost in a feeling of wonder as she continued to be held in Simon's friendly embrace. His hug was so warm…so comfortable…that the bespectacled chipette closed her eyes, forgetting to answer her counterpart.

She was enjoying the warmth, humming softly with contentment…when suddenly, Simon pulled back from his hug to look Jeanette in the eyes. Before she could whimper in disappointment that her comfort had been ended, she suddenly noticed…that there were tears in her friend's steel-blue eyes.

"J-Jeanette…?" he said, his voice cracking a bit, "Is…is that a no…?"

Simon's eyes welled with tears, his little nose twitched slightly.

The bespectacled chipmunk seemed so close to _tears…_

Jeanette gasped softly, realizing that she must have appeared to refuse Simon's request for forgiveness. The chipette suddenly found herself feeling somewhat guilty.

"Oh, Simon…" she said gently, sniffing again, "Of course I forgive you…you're my…my best friend. I should have told you about that a long time ago. I'm sorry…"

Simon blinked the built-up tears of worry from his eyes and looked at his bespectacled friend in astonishment.

'_I scare her so badly with her worst fear,' _he thought, _'And she tries to turn the blame on herself…oh, what a sweetheart…'_

"Jeanette, _I'm _the one who pulled a cruel and _severely _uncalled-for prank on _you. _Regardless of whether or not I knew you were aqua-phobic, that was a terrible thing to do, and…I'm sorry."

Simon paused, looking somewhat shy in Jeanette's eyes, then:

"Of course, if…if I _had _known of your fear of water, I…I _never_ would have done such a thing to you…"

The chipmunk punctuated his statement by smiling, leaning closer, and gently touching his little pink nose to hers.

Jeanette pulled back, tilted her head a bit, her soft, violet-blue eyes flickering as she studied her blue-clad bare-chested friend's face.

Simon struggled to keep from blushing; something about being so perilously close to Jeanette's kind, furry face made him peculiarly uncomfortable.

Suddenly, the dark-brown chipette's face brightened, and she took Simon off guard by wrapping her arms around him in a joyous embrace, giggling timidly as she did so.

Simon blushed, stunned, but gratefully returned the hug, happy to know his cruel, careless mistake had not scarred his friendship with the bright-minded chipette.

The bespectacled two were enjoying the warmth and comfort of their embrace; so much, in fact, that they did not notice the group standing behind them…until Alvin abruptly cleared his throat.

Simon and Jeanette's eyes snapped open. They pulled back, and Simon turned- to see his older brother staring down at him with a smug expression on his furry face.

"Well, well, bro…" he said, as the others tried to hide their giggling, "Are we, ah, interrupting anything?"

Simon and Jeanette's dark-brown faces flushed a shade of red that could be seen through their fur, little pink noses reddening as they did so.

"W-w-we, uh, I mean, she and I…w-we were-!" Simon stammered.

"Hey, it's alright," Eleanor said cheerily, "That's great that you made my sister feel better, Simon!"

"Yeah!" Theodore quipped, "It's okay to hug, Si!"

Eleanor giggled, and took the green-clad chipmunk off-guard by whirling around…and the entire group burst out laughing as the youngest chipette knocked little Theodore right off his feet with a playful hug that sent them both tumbling into the grass.

"Okay, okay, I get it," Simon laughed, his voice still edged with embarrassment. The middle chipmunk stood to his feet, turning to address Brittany: "So, um…sorry I did that to Jean, Brittany…I mean, I…I didn't know she was afraid of water…"

Brittany's smile faded, and she tilted her head, giving Simon a critical eye. "She…she _told _you?"

"Yeah…"

"Wow...good job, four-eyes," Brittany said in an unusually level tone. Simon winced. "Hey, I _mean _it…she didn't even tell Miss Miller about that before…"

"Tell the old lady 'bout what, hothead?" Alvin quipped, butting right into the conversation.

"Nunyo…" the chipette muttered, glaring at Alvin with annoyed ice-blue eyes.

"Nunyo…?" the red-clad chipmunk asked, puzzled, "Nunyo wha-?"

"None yo beeswax!" Brittany snapped, quickly shoving the eldest chipmunk away while he chuckled at her pleasingly random burst of anger.

With the interruption gone, the pink-clad chipette turned to address Simon yet again, in an oddly soft tone…for Brittany.

"Well, I'm not much for forgiveness, but, alright…"

Brittany gave Simon a sly smile, ice-blue eyes gleaming. "I'm really more for revenge, but, well…Jean's got _that _one covered."

The pink-clad chipette suddenly whirled around and took off across the yard, leaving Simon somewhat puzzled as he remained standing by the oak tree.

"Wait...what?" he called, but it was Alvin who answered:

"Uh, Si?" the eldest chipmunk said as he slowly backed away from his middle brother, a smile matching Brittany's plastered on his furry face, "Turn around, bro!"

Simon cocked his head, and promptly turned back to Jeanette…and yelped as an ice-cold spray of water blasted him right on his bare, furry chest.

Jeanette giggled as she held up the hose that Simon had discarded earlier, squeezing its dark rubber handle as she utterly drenched her counterpart in freezing water.

Simon let out a cheerful cry as he struggled to shield himself from his friend's playfully vengeful attack- and suddenly bolted away, laughing as Jeanette gave up her timid ways if not for a moment to take off after him, giggling as her light violet-blue eyes sparkled with joy.

The rest of the young chipmunks and chipettes quickly joined in, the chipettes especially surprised but pleased that their normally shy and somewhat reserved middle sister was joining in the fun.

Jeanette was, admittedly, as happy as could be. She felt as if a dark pressure was lifted from her chest, as if she could _breathe _better knowing that both Simon and Miss Miller were now aware of the reason for her nervousness around water.

And the purple-clad chipette found an odd security in knowing that her best friend knew exactly what terrified her so badly.

Though she was simply too young to completely understand it, the feeling came from the fact that Simon, with the knowledge in mind of what Jeanette was truly afraid of, would do anything he could to protect her from her fear, and comfort her if she was ever faced with that terror again...

* * *

Simon and Jeanette lay on their backs in the soft grass of the Millers' backyard, staring up at the slowly darkening plane of sky above them.

The soft, silver disc of the moon had already appeared, despite the streaks of soft blue and warm red-orange that still rippled across the late afternoon sky.

The beautiful, soft coloration reflected from the two middle siblings' round-lens glasses; underneath, two pairs of light violet-blue and steel-blue eyes flickered as they studied the calm, cloudless sky.

Jeanette sighed softly, a content smile on her fuzzy lips.

"This has been fun, Simon," she said softly, looking over at her blue-clad counterpart, whose dark brown fur was still damp from the chipette's friendly attack.

Simon looked back, sharing his friend's soft smile. "Yeah…I wish we could come over more often. Time spent at school…well, it's just not the same."

"Yeah…"

The two bespectacled ones were silent once again, simply enjoying the comfort of having a trustworthy friend nearby.

The others had already headed inside earlier, to dry off and get a snack. Simon and Jeanette had stayed outside, however, to enjoy the day as best they could.

"Simon?" Jeanette asked softly.

"Yeah?"

"Um…I…I just…" The chipette sighed. "Thanks…"

Simon looked questioningly at his purple-clad friend. "For what?"

"For…not thinking less of me…you know, for being so…_stupid…"_

"What?" Simon asked, surprised. He shifted so that he could look right at his bespectacled friend, but she ignored his gaze, continuing to stare up at the dark sky.

"Jeanette," the blue-clad chipmunk said firmly, "You are the most kind-hearted and bright-minded girl I know. Just because you're afraid of water doesn't mean you're dumb or cowardly…"

Jeanette sniffed once, feeling her cheeks burning with embarrassment at Simon's kind words. "Thanks, but…I…I meant the _reason _I'm scared of water. I _never_ should have climbed up that tree…I _knew _I was too weak, I _knew _that it was foolish to climb over the river…but I did it anyways, just to try and impress Brittany…"

"Oh," Simon said softly, "Well, heh, I believe that we have found that to be quite an impossible thing to do…"

The purple-clad chipette did not respond.

"Jeanette?"

Simon looked over at his silent friend again…and was shocked to see a single, shining tear rolling down her furry little cheek.

"Jean? Are you alright?" the bespectacled chipmunk asked, alarmed. He rolled over so that he lay next to his dark-furred friend, laying a gentle hand on the exposed light-brown fur of her belly.

Jeanette whined softly, quickly swiping the tear with one hand.

"I'm f-fine…" she said softly, turning her head so that Simon could not see her face. He felt her body shudder slightly under his caring touch, stiffening slightly as if shocked.

But Simon was persistent. If his best friend was crying, he _had _to know why.

"Come on, Jeanette," he said sweetly, putting one arm around the tensed-up chipette. She seemed to be fighting to keep from crying. "Please? I saw those tears…are you okay?"

Simon gently hugged the purple-clad chipette once, wishing that she would at least look him in the eyes. He could feel her beginning to tremble ever so slightly. To his relief, Jeanette turned her head…

Jeanette looked her best friend right in his steel-blue eyes, seeing the care and worry deep inside them. She felt his gentle invitation for an embrace, just in case she needed it: a cautioned arm across her middle.

She _did _need it.

Without warning, Jeanette's soft violet-blue eyes grew shiny…and the trembling chipette finally lost her battle. She broke down into tears, sitting up so that she could bury her face in her hands.

Immediately, Simon sat up with her, gently hugging the quietly sobbing chipette in his dark-furred arms, despite not knowing what troubled his friend.

"Aw, Jeanette…" he said gently, "Please, tell me what's wrong?"

The purple-clad chipette pulled back, removing her purple, round-lens glasses to wipe at her eyes and nose with one arm. "I…I…don't know…" she cried, "I-It's just…you're _such_ a good_ friend_, Simon…and…and I can n-never do _anything _in return."

Simon cocked his head quizzically. If there was one thing he did not appreciate about Jeanette, it was how she would always try- and often succeed- to turn any bad situation on herself, trying to take the blame away from others whom she cared about.

'_She's such a sweetheart,' _Simon thought with a smile. He pulled back a bit more, gently pulling Jeanette's arms away from her eyes as he did so.

The softly crying chipette sniffed, looking up at him with a slight hint of confusion in her uncovered eyes. Simon was nothing more than a dark brown blur in her impaired vision.

Even as she squinted to try and see what her friend was doing, the bare-chested chipmunk rubbed Jeanette's glasses on the soft, lighter fur of his chest, checking them every few seconds to make sure they were perfectly clean.

Satisfied, Simon slid Jeanette's violet glasses back onto her furry face…

In her eyes, the chipette's best friend finally came back into focus. He wore a kind smile, and his eyes simply conveyed the blue-clad chipmunk's care for his bespectacled friend.

Simon paused…

"Jeanette?" he asked, "Do you…want to do something in return?"

The chipette's face brightened, and she sniffed. "Of course…_anything_…"

Simon looked his best friend right in her teary, violet-blue eyes and said, in as gentle a tone as he could manage:

"Then _never_ leave my side, Jeanette. You _are_…the greatest friend I could ever ask for; smart, caring, and you _never_ cease to be the wind beneath my wings…your presence alone is truly enough to return favor for _anything _I could ever do for you."

Jeanette's eyes widened; she gasped, hardly able to imagine that her close friend actually meant such a thing.

"So…" Simon continued, "Please don't cry…there's no reason to shed any tears..." Then, with a bit of humor: "You…_are _afraid of _water_, after all…"

Jeanette sniffed again, and, as she felt the last of her warm tears run down her cheeks, the chipette suddenly brightened as caught on to Simon's joke.

Her smile widened, as did Simon's, and after a moment the bespectacled two found themselves laughing near-uncontrollably as their happiness grew to a level never reached before.

It was not from the chipmunk's joke; rather, it was from the fact that the middle siblings were bubbling with mirth at the unseen magnitude of their friendship.

Simon and Jeanette were so caught up in the joy of the moment that it took them a minute to realize that Miss Miller was calling them.

"Simon!" she called, "Jeanette! It's time to come in!"

"Yes ma'am!" Simon called back, his voice still wavering with happiness.

"Coming, Miss Miller!" Jeanette called out with him.

Simon jumped to his feet, and quickly extended a hand to help his best friend up. Jeanette took it with a grateful smile on her face, and the bespectacled two happily made their way back to the Miller household, the blue-clad chipmunk's arm wrapped comfortingly around his purple-clad friend's shoulders…

* * *

**(To readers of TFH Chronicles ****ONLY****)**

And Jeanette kept her unspoken promise to Simon, for many years to come. She stuck with him like his own shadow, and together these two sharp-minded chipmunks enjoyed a blossoming friendship that one day grew into something…more…

Jeanette remained the 'wind beneath Simon's wings'.

She comforted him with her mere company, for her violet-blue eyes let Simon know that there was a friendly presence nearby every time he saw them.

_But no._

This unseen yet all but unbreakable friendship…was crushed. Years later, it was ended by a single blow from a monster. A monster that should have never existed.

A monster whose very purpose was to destroy their lives.

And with that one, _single_ blow, Simon's heartfelt trust in Alvin…was _shattered…_

_And his greatest love…was lost forever._

* * *

_**A side-story from the Flower Halo Chronicles, told from the mouth of Raconteur…**_

_**-V17**_

_**-May that last paragraph haunt your knowledge of this story…leaving you with answers that are **_**not yet answered…**

_**Even if you're not a reader of the TFH main, PLEASE review.  
This is my first hard attempt at a fluff scene…I'm not too good at them. Tell me how I did…please? =)**_

_**-Cero  
-Agitok  
-Mmiapson  
-Sid**_


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